Piper and the Nutcracker
by ammstar11
Summary: Piper and her half sister Drew live with Pipers grandpa after they lose their parents. For Christmas Piper receives a Nutcracker from her grandpa and can feel a special pull to it. That night while everyone sleeps the mouse king and his army invade and Pipers life changes forever. What's Christmas without a little magic? (COMPLETE!)
1. Chapter 1 Bring you down to size

**Piper and the Nutcracker**

Jasper Nutcracker AU

 **So I was watching Barbie in the Nutcracker because I love it so much and thought Why the hell not? So here we are! I thought it would be fun to write this, I'm still working on it but here's the first chapter for now, though I made change it later we'll see.**

 **Ch.1 Bring you down to size**

Piper and her sister Drew live with Pipers grandpa Tom; they are half-sisters on their mother's side, after Drew lost her father their mother remarried and had Piper, they had lost their parents just a few years ago.

It's Christmas Eve and for their family tradition everyone is to open one gift that night. Piper unwraps her gift from Grandpa Tom and sees that it is a Nutcracker dressed in Purple and gold, while Drew gets a beauty kit that she has wanted for the past two months. Drew looks at the Nutcracker when she saw Piper examining it. "It doesn't look so great, kind of ugly if you ask me." Drew says as she looks more closely at it. "Well I think he's wonderful." Piper says looking at her sister then she smiles at her grandfather "Thank you grandpa." He smiles back "You're very welcome, and I'm glad that you think so, he's special this one. He might not seem like much on the outside but on the inside dwells the heart of a prince." Drew rolled her eyes and went back to sorting through the makeup kit she had received.

After grandpa Tom had gone to bed the girls sat up going through their gifts, Piper couldn't bring herself to put down her Nutcracker, she felt the need to keep him near her, it just felt so right. Finally Drew gets annoyed and picks up the Nutcracker from beside Piper and turns it over in her hands "This piece of junk is supposed to be princely? Give me a break he probably just ran out of money after my gift and picked this up from a flea-market or found it in the trash outside." She started fiddling with the left arm until it popped off. "Oops… Oh well you're too old for stupid toys anyway." She throws the Nutcracker down by Piper and walks out of the room with her present leaving Piper sitting on the floor upset and trying to fix the arm on her new precious gift.

"Don't listen to her. You are not junk I know Grandpa Tom is right, there is something special about you, I can feel it." She uses a ribbon from one of the presents as a makeshift bandage and sling to hold the arm in place until she can find a better way. Piper looked closely at the Nutcracker's face, though it seemed like any old nutcracker anywhere else, the eyes seemed to draw her in, they were such a beautiful shade of blue and almost seemed to shine with a life of their own and just above his mouth was either a small chip or crack that gave the impression that he was smiling.

That night Piper slept in the living room, like she had when she was little and wanted to see Santa, or on nights when her parents would come home late, those nights she would fall asleep on the couch and wake up the next morning tucked into her bed. But tonight she just wanted to be near the tree and the beautiful decorations that reminded her of a time long ago when their family had been complete. She slept hugging her Nutcracker close for comfort, she felt at peace with him near.

As Piper slept the clock ticked away on a quiet night until it chimed the midnight hour, then things began to stir, the room began to glow, on the far wall by the tree was a small hole barely noticeable. From that hole emerged a troupe of mice like little soldiers, they marched into the room like an invading army, the Nutcracker had fallen to the floor as Piper had turned in her sleep and now stood up on his own, he blinked his eyes as the magic of the night filled him with life, the spell that had rendered him immobile was now lifted, he looked around and saw the invaders and drawing his sword with his good hand charged the mice army "Oh no you don't you darn mice!"

Piper blinked open her eyes when she thought she heard voices around her, she sat up and noticed that she was no longer clutching the Nutcracker so she looked around for him. As she looked over she noticed a mouse nibbling on leftover snacks from Christmas Eve that hadn't been put away. "Hey! Get away from there!" she shooed the mouse away and once again caught the sound of voices but this time she was awake… wasn't she? What she saw was the Nutcracker that Grandpa Tom had given her fighting against more mice over a stack of presents under the Christmas tree. "Back! Back you traitors!" he said as he fought them off. Was this all just a weird dream? Must be she thought. But as she watched more mice entered the room from the hole and one was wearing a golden crown on his head.

The mouse king glanced around the room and spotted the Nutcracker on top of the presents he grit his teeth and glowered at the Nutcracker "Even as a Nutcracker you still manage to be a thorn in my side!" he growled out. The Nutcracker having defeated the mice nearest him pointed his golden sword at the mouse king in challenge "That's right, and a thorn I shall remain!" he jumped down and engaged the mouse king in battle, they circled one another and the mouse king thrust his golden sceptre at the Nutcracker who parried it with his sword, they traded blows back and forth, though the Nutcracker seemed well versed in swordplay with his broken arm it was clear to Piper that he wouldn't be able to hold out for long so she snapped out of her stupor caused by the strange events unfolding before her, dream or no, she wasn't about to let anything else happen to her Nutcracker tonight.

The mouse king had managed to disarm the Nutcracker and had knocked him off his feet and now stood over him menacingly "This time I'll turn you into something more useful…" he raised his sceptre and swung it towards the Nutcracker "Like kindling!" Piper reached for the nearest object "Not in my house you won't!" she said as she readied herself to smash a vase on the evil little mouse king. He turned towards her just now noticing her presence in the room and directed his sceptre at her instead "Meddling human towering tall, let my sceptre shrink you small!" he chanted "Look out!" cried the Nutcracker but it was too late, a shimmering light shot from the sceptre and enveloped Piper where she stood. She began to shrink until she herself was the size of a doll or mouse. Even if this was a dream this could not be good.

The mouse king edged towards her "Not so fearless now are you girl?" He smirked at her as he approached, Piper stepped back trying to keep her distance from this creepy rodent. Just then the Nutcracker kicked the vase that had fallen to the ground when Piper had shrunk and knocked the mouse king away. He placed himself between Piper and the mouse king and his soldiers as they crept closer weapons drawn and ready. The Nutcracker had his sword again but only being one handed and having to protect Piper while fighting multiple enemies, he was clearly at a disadvantage once again. Piper silently cursed Drew for carelessly breaking the Nutcrackers arm even if she was dreaming right now -which she was beginning to doubt she was- she was still scared and confused by what was happening.

As the Nutcracker fought back the mice soldiers he glanced over his shoulder at Piper his blue eyes shining in the light of the fireplace that was still burning. "Can you make it up the mantel?" he asked as he fought back another mouse. Piper looked at the fireplace and shook her head "Not going to happen." There was no way she could climb that. But then she looked past the Nutcracker as another swarm of mice approached and spotted some garland hanging on the edge of the fireplace "Then again…" she began climbing and looked back at the Nutcracker as he fought a little easier now that he didn't have to protect her at the same time, as he knocked down one mouse another ran up behind him but just as Piper was about to call a warning to him he twisted around and in a graceful arc brought down his sword to disarm and knock away that mouse too. Piper couldn't help the smile that pulled at her lips, just then a mouse soldier grabbed at her by the ankle while she had been distracted and tried to pull her down but she kicked him away. She wasn't completely helpless after all.

But as she looked back at the Nutcracker she began to worry because no matter how well he fought, still more mice appeared in the room and rushed towards him with their weapons at the ready. Even if she could climb to safety, or relative safety until the mice followed her, the Nutcracker couldn't climb with just one hand and now the mice were backing him up to the fire. Piper felt as though her heart were in her throat as she watched unable to do anything to help him. Just as the Nutcrackers back hit the grate of the fireplace an idea hit him, he jumped up and planted his sword into the mesh and kicked away the closest mice but as he hung there the mouse king approached on the side his sceptre now a wicked blade aimed right at the Nutcracker "You have nowhere to run now Nutcracker." He smiled maniacally as he prepared to swing his blade, the Nutcracker tried to free his own blade but it stuck fast in the mesh of the fire grate, just in time as the mouse king brought his weapon down the Nutcracker swung his body like a pendulum and leapt out of the path of the mouse kings blade. Unfortunately he had lost hold of his sworn and was now weaponless.

The mouse king momentarily thrown off balance from the force of his swing regained his stance and turned towards the Nutcracker once again. Determined rage burned in his eyes as he made for the Nutcracker "You're not going to get away from me this time." He said an evil grin twisting his face "Unless you'd like to feed the fire." The Nutcracker moved back and glanced around for a way out then he jumped to the side and Piper saw that she had been wrong before, the Nutcracker began to climb the fire grate despite his one good hand, he managed it by hopping and grabbing onto the mesh with his hand while finding footholds, but the mouse king wasn't far behind him. "Nutcracker!" Piper called out in concern, she wasn't sure what else to call him, she watched as the mouse kings blade just missed the Nutcrackers foot as he continued to climb. Once he got to the top of the fire grate he jumped to the garland hanging on the opposite side of the fireplace from where Piper was. She watched in horror as the mouse king this time turned his sceptre into a crossbow and aimed it right at the Nutcracker as he struggled to maintain his hold on the garland.

At the very last second the Nutcracker dropped from the ornament he had been hanging onto just as it shattered he landed on one below it and Piper let out the breath she had been holding. The shattered shards rained down on the mouse king and he readied a new shot at the defenceless Nutcracker and Piper refused to hold her tongue any longer. "Hey! Up here!" she shouted and swung out her foot and let fly her slipper that sacked the mouse king right between the eyes as he turned towards her voice, Piper felt very proud of herself for that, especially since it had knocked the mouse king from the logs he had been standing on and left him dazed on the floor. The rest of the mice were shocked and rushed forward to help their king, they gathered him and his fallen sceptre and scurried back to the hole from whence they came.

But before Piper could move from where she was, the tacks holding the garland in place had come loose when she had swung herself to launch her slipper and now she found herself being swept by the now loose rope of garland to the other side of the fireplace where it was still secure and knocked into the Nutcracker still there, they were both flung to the ground and had landed on the pillow Piper had dropped onto the floor when she had awoken. The Nutcracker stood up first and helped Piper to her feet, as they stood there the Nutcracker seemed to smile shyly at her. "Thank you for saving my life." He said and then he indicated the ribbon holding his broken arm "And for this." Piper still felt drawn to his blue eyes even when they weren't looking right at her "Y-you're welcome…" she stammered out. Then they looked around them at the aftermath of the battle that had just happened. "This has got to be a dream…" Piper breathed still looking around the now enormous room.

"I'm afraid that it's all real." The Nutcracker said as he retrieved his sword while Piper picked up her slipper and put it back on. "And I have to return home to my homeland while I still have the chance." Piper felt sad hearing that he had to leave so soon but tried not to let it show. "Could you at least turn me back to normal before you go?" she asked instead. "You know, because I used to be taller, not the size of a doll." Those words felt so weird to say. But the Nutcracker just shook his head regretfully "I'm afraid that I can't; only the sugarplum princess can reverse the mouse kings spell." Piper blinked was this some sort of fairy tale? "The sugarplum-what?" the Nutcracker nodded "I've been searching for the sugarplum princess ever since the mouse king cursed me to become a nutcracker." Piper wondered how powerful this mouse king really was. "You mean you used to b-" she was going to say human "Not a Nutcracker." was all that he said though so for all she knew he could have been a bird or something, though she doubted that a bird could have used a sword so well.

Suddenly the wooden owl that adorned Grandpa Tom's old grandfather clock flew down to land on the arm of the chair by the fire. "Perhaps I could help." The owl said. Oh sure now the furniture was coming to life, why not? Thought Piper as the Nutcracker stood between her and the once wooden owl. "You will find the sugarplum princess on an island across the sea of storms." The Nutcracker lowered his sword and addressed to owl "But it's impossible to cross the sea of storms." He said. "It's dangerous yes, but not impossible." the owl replied. The Nutcracker sheathed his sword and turned towards the hole that the mice had fled through. Piper watched him begin to leave, uncertain what to do next. Then the Nutcracker turned to glance over his shoulder at her "Well," he said "Aren't you coming along?"

His question caught Piper off guard "You want me to go in there? I don't know…" she couldn't help the feeling of trepidation in the pit of her stomach. The owl who had been watching them decided to speak up then "Surely you don't want to remain this way the rest of your life." Well when you put it that way… "How would I get back though?" if this was real and she somehow managed to go through some magical mouse hole into another world, how was she supposed to get home once she returned to normal? The owl flew from its perch on the arm of the chair over to the Christmas tree and plucked the necklace from Pipers favorite ornament, a ballerina that her mother had given her one Christmas long ago. Then the owl flew down and dropped the necklace into Pipers hands. "Once you've found the sugarplum princess, just open the locket and you will return home back to normal." Piper wanted more information but before she could ask anymore the owl returned to its place atop the grandfather clock and back to being wooden once more.

Piper heaved a sigh and after turning the locket over in her hand once more, put it on and headed towards the entrance to the mouse hole where the Nutcracker waited. They looked at one another "Are you ready?" the Nutcracker asked, concern clear in his voice. It warmed her to know that he cared, Piper nodded "Yes, let's go." And with that they entered the mouse hole.

 **Please let me know what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2 Through the mouse hole we go

**In case you are wondering I have Octavian as the mouse king because of his thirst for power and with Jason being the Nutcracker it just made sense to me, I love the story of the Nutcracker and am having a lot of fun writing this, and of course as you know I don't own the Nutcracker or Heroes of Olympus.**

 **So you know how I said I might change some things later on? Well I just noticed some thing I had missed before so I added it in now.**

Ch.2 Through the mouse hole we go

They fell and fell through a tunnel of swirling lights and colors until they landed in drifts of snow. Piper looked around amazed, the ice and snow glittered and sparkled in a soft blue glow "Where are we?" the Nutcracker looked around as he sat up "Hmm we must have taken a wrong turn somewhere. Now where did my sword go…" he looked around him in the snow. Piper looked down and saw it buried in the snow near where she was standing. "Here I'll give you a hand." She picked up the golden sword from the ground seeing that his arm from the elbow down was still clutching the sword. "Uh, literally." The Nutcracker walked over to her and retrieved his arm and sword "Sorry. That um, tends to happen… a lot actually." Piper tried not to laugh. The Nutcracker reattached his arm not seeming bothered at all.

Piper blinked as a ball of shimmering light flitted past her "What was that? A firefly, but there's snow." The Nutcracker shook his head "Not a firefly, it's a snow fairy." Piper watched the snow fairy with wonder. The little fairy bumped into the Nutcracker and fell into the snow; he bent down and picked her up "I'm sorry, please be more careful." Piper stepped closer and helped dust the snow off of the little fairy. "There you go." The snow fairy jumped up and flitted off again. "Not even a thank you." Said the Nutcracker though Piper could tell he wasn't upset by it. "Well, let us be on our way then." He walked over to one of the ice walls surrounding them and tried to cut his way through with his sword but the ice was too thick "Well I guess that's not going to work, these walls are made of solid ice." He said.

Snow began to fall around them and as Piper watched it turned into more snow fairies, they began to glow and dance through the air around them, Piper couldn't help but to think they looked beautiful. When she was little her mother had placed her and Drew in dance lessons and she had loved every second of it, but she hadn't danced since she had lost her parents. Just then the little snow fairy that had first appeared flew over to her and tried to get her to join in. "I don't know, it's been so long since I danced last I don't know if I can." Piper told the little snow fairy but the fairy was very insistent so Piper let out a small laugh "Alright, I'll try." Piper extended he leg and started to copy what the fairies were doing as she tried to recall the steps that she had spent so long practicing as a small child determined to do well in something she had loved. She watched the snow fairies as they danced and mimicked their movies as best she could but she was still rusty after so long and decided to just watch.

She continued watching the snow fairies as they danced and then they became balls of light again and mimicked fireworks then they swirled around Piper and the Nutcracker once again drawing them closer together, and lit a path towards a break in the ice to show the way out. The Nutcracker chucked "I guess that was their way of thanking us for helping their friend." They shielded their eyes against the bright light that now shone through the ice. "Where did they all go though?" asked Piper. "I don't really know, maybe off to make a blizzard somewhere." Said the Nutcracker and Piper wondered if he was kidding or not. They left the snow enclosure leaving footprints behind as they went, unaware that wherever Piper stepped flowers bloomed.

They walked through the break in the ice and emerged into a sunny day looking out onto a beautiful landscape with blue open sky, snow covered mountains and lush green hills and forests. It was truly breath taking. Off in the distance Piper thought she could make out the shape of a castle on a ridge. "Welcome to my homeland." Piper bent down and scooped up a handful of snow "The snow's not even cold…" She had just noticed it now, she stood up as a breeze carried a light scent to her nose "the trees here smell like peppermint, and the sky is bluer than I've ever seen." It really was like being in a dream so beautiful and bright.

The Nutcracker looked around not as overcome by awe as Piper was "Pretty soon this will all just be a memory, if the mouse king has his way." Piper was liking the mouse king less and less, how could anyone not find such a beautiful place amazing, and instead want to destroy it? "Come, this way." The Nutcracker said as he led Piper towards a pathway leading into the forest nearby. "You're sure that the sugarplum princess can help? Make me normal sized, you… not a Nutcracker? Could she help us fight the mouse king too?" Piper wondered how powerful this sugarplum princess was and why they needed to find her. The Nutcracker nodded but didn't turn back as he led the way "Yes, she is our only hope of defeating him."

…

As they walked neither one of them had noticed the eyes and ears close by observing them for the mouse king, "Hmmm interesting." The bat that had been hidden amongst the branches of the trees flew off in the direction of the mouse kings palace. He fluttered past the guards stationed along the palace walls and in through the open window that led to the throne room where the mouse king leaned over a map of the kingdom. The throne room was draped in purple and gold and had tall windows on the walls. The mouse king addressed the bat without looking up from the map spread out before him "Well? What news do you bring?" the bat scratched its head trying as if trying to recall what it had seen and heard in the forest. "I wish I could remember, but I'm so hungry and weak I think I might faint…" it collapsed dramatically the mouse king sneered "You annoying insolent little bat, I should turn you into a ceiling fan to make you useful!" the bat immediately jumped to its feet "That would really be shame because then I couldn't tell you the juicy bit of gossip I overheard in the forest." He looked meaningfully at the mouse king.

The mouse king grumbled and tossed a dish of fruit to the floor near the bat who greedily ate it all as fast as he could "Thank you so very much you most royal majesty! May I just say that you're looking especially regal this evening sire?" the mouse king glared at the bat "Right! Well for starters Nutcracker's back." The mouse kings eyes blazed with fury "What?! Here?" the bat nodded "And he's got some girl with him. Don't know where she came from though." the bat said. The mouse king lifted his hand to his head where he had hit it when he fell after being hit by Piper's slipper "I do." He said not at all pleased. "Now here's the good part, they're looking for a sugarplum princess who could supposedly," he started to cower "defeat… you." The mouse king looked furious and the bat took a couple steps back "According to the Nutcracker!" he tried to illustrate his point by pointing off into the distance.

The mouse king blinked a few times as the news sank in. "Sugarplum princess? I've never heard of a sugarplum princess!" he paced in front of his throne then stopped abruptly and turned to a guard that was standing nearby "Bring me the royal registry! And bring me the Nutcracker." The malice was clear in his voice and on his face. It was time to settle things once and for all.

 **Please let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3 Sightseeing

**Here's a couple more introductions for you**

 **Ch. 3 sightseeing**

Piper and the Nutcracker walked quietly for a time, both thinking of how they needed to find the sugarplum princess but neither knowing how, the only clue was what the wooden owl had told them about the island across the sea of storms. As they left the forest the entered a village or at least what remained of one. There were scattered bits of gingerbread houses and candy strewn everywhere while a few houses still remained standing. A light mist covered the village making it seem more desolate. "It's all that's left of the Gingerbread village." The Nutcracker said as he looked at the wreckage before them, Piper couldn't quite read the expression on his face but his eye burned with a silent rage. "The mouse kings work no doubt." He said as he began to walk through the village.

Piper was new to this world but her heart broke for the people who lived here and what they must have gone through, seeing their homes destroyed, it was horrible. The Nutcracker looked around as they walked through the streets avoiding candy and bits of gingerbread as they went "I didn't realise that things had gotten this bad…" there was pain in his voice and Pipers heart went out to him, she looked down and saw a doll laying in a drift of snow by one of the houses, it must have been abandoned or dropped when they villagers fled. She leaned down and picked up the doll, the Nutcracker watched as she did so. Suddenly they hear the sound of a horse nearby and exchange looks before going to investigate.

They found a horse in a paddock just past the houses; it was saddled and had on its bridle still though no one appeared to be around "Steady now, we won't hurt you don't worry." Piper said soothingly as she reached out to the horse to show that they meant no harm. The horse calmed down and let Piper stroke its mane, suddenly out of nowhere they were pelted by snowballs. "Hey!" Piper cried as she tried to shield her face, the Nutcracker turned towards the direction the snow balls had come from "It's an ambush take cover!" he crouched down behind a post trying to see where their attackers where and Piper ducked down with him trying to avoid the still flying snow.

They peered over the fence and saw that their attackers were just children "It's alright," the Nutcracker laughed a little "their just children." But the next snow ball knocked his hat to the ground and they took cover again, the Nutcracker retrieved his hat "Just children huh?" Piper smiled at him he laughed again "Children with very good aim, yes." Piper looked down at the doll she had picked up in the village; it had given her an idea. She lifted the doll up above the fence and waved it like a flag of surrender "Please wait! We found this doll, does she belong to you?" she asked as she and the Nutcracker peered over the fence once more. A little girl, no doubt one of the villagers, ran forward "Marie!" she cried as she retrieved the doll from Piper and hugged it close, the other child, a little boy came out from where they had been hiding while throwing the snow balls and began to move close to them. The Nutcracker knelt down in front of the little girl "What happened here, could you please tell us?" the girl looked down "We went out with Arion here to gather berries in the forest…" the little boy joined in the explanation "And when we came back everything and everyone was gone!" the girl picked up the story again "It was the mouse kings army that did this." The boy crossed his arms over his chest "This is all Prince Jason's fault!"

The Nutcracker looked surprised for a second but hid it, Piper didn't have any idea who Prince Jason was or what he could have to do with this. She turned to the Nutcracker as he stood up "whose Prince Jason?" he didn't look at her as he explained "He's the son of the previous king who ruled this land before the mouse king took over." The boy nodded "Yeah, but he wasn't much of a prince." Piper could tell the little boy wasn't a fan of the prince though she wasn't sure why. "The king had left his throne and golden sceptre to his royal advisor," "The mouse." The little girl added the Nutcracker nodded "Until the prince could prove himself worthy of the throne." Piper could see where this was going she arched an eyebrow at the Nutcracker "And let me guess, the mouse like being king? But then what happened to Prince Jason?" the boy made a dismissive motion with his hand "Don't know, don't care." He said. "We're better off without him." His sister, Piper guessed, added.

The Nutcracker had that unreadable look on his face again then took a deep breath "It's too dangerous here, we should travel together until we find a safe place for you two." He said to the children. Piper smiled and looked over to see the horse, Arion, was hitched to a sleigh so she led him over and together she and the Nutcracker helped the children inside. As they road in the sleigh the Nutcracker seemed lost in thought, no doubt there was a lot to think about so Piper let him be and turned to the children "So what are your names? I'm Piper." The little girl smiled as she looked at Piper "I'm Hazel, and this is my brother Nico." Piper smiled as Nico just waved and went back to watching the scenery go by as the sleigh went. "It's a pleaser to meet you two." She said.

After some time they came to a stop near a ridge, they could hear the sound of marching feet so they leave the sleigh to go have a look. They climb the ridge but stay far enough back that they won't be seen from below "It's the mouse kings army." Piper says as she watches them march on down the road below. They are carting a caravan of carts full of candy from the destroyed village "Yeah and they are carrying away what's left of our village." Says Hazel, Nico doesn't look to happy about it either but before he can say anything they hear a cry from Arion and the voices of soldiers, they look back to see two of the mouse soldiers trying to restrain Arion but he pulls free and dashes of with the sleigh in tow while knocking over the solders. One soldier looks over and sees them standing there "There they are! Get them!"

The cry was heard by the other mice and the looked up and began storming up the hill after the group, Piper looked around for an escape route "Come on, into the woods!" she called and led the way towards the trees with Hazel and Nico right behind her and the Nutcracker bringing up the rear. They ran as fast as they could but the mouse army was still hot on their tails and catching up fast. "Oh no, they're getting closer!" cried Hazel as she looked back before they run around a bend in the path. All of the sudden a rope ladder drops down from the trees in front of them "Up here!" comes a voice. With the mice gaining on them they don't seem to have much choice, the Nutcracker is the last one up the ladder and it is pulled up into the trees before the mice can reach them and they continue running past. "Is everyone alright?" the Nutcracker asks as he gets to the platform in the trees, Piper is standing with Hazel and Nico close to her while people stand nearby with makeshift weapons pointed at them "I'm not really sure right now…" Piper says as she pulls the children closer to her.

 **Please let me know what you think!**


	4. Chapter 4 New allies

**Merry Christmas everyone!** **I was googling Coach Hedge and typed Goach Hedge, am I wrong though? Anyway here's the next chapter and more people have been added! I hope you are happy with my choices. Sorry that I don't give very good physical descriptions of people.**

 **Ch. 4 New allies**

"Well what have we here?" asked the man standing closest to the Nutcracker, he was a shorter man he looked at the Nutcracker with clear suspicion. "A wooden spy? Some kind of mouse king trap I'll bet." Said the other, Nutcracker seemed to recognize him Piper thought though she wasn't too sure how she knew that. They look over at Piper and the children "And kidnappers as well huh?" said the first man to have spoken. Hazel steps forward "No! They saved us!" The two of them still didn't seem too convinced "Well if you have nothing to hide then I'm sure that you won't mind answering a few questions then." It was the second one this time, he gestured for Piper and the Nutcracker to follow him as he walked over to a door in the trunk of a tree. "Come along children, Mellie here will take care of you." Hazel and Nico reluctantly walked over to Mellie while the other two led Piper and the Nutcracker inside for questioning.

"Well then, let's start off with who you are and what you are doing here." Said the older man. "I'm Nutcracker and this is Piper. We're both victims of the mouse kings magic." said the Nutcracker "We're trying to find the sugarplum princess, she's the only one who can defeat the mouse king." Said Piper. "The sugarplum princess?" the younger of the two seems almost familiar with the name. "Blegh, I've never heard such a thing." Said the older man dismissively while crossing his arms over his chest. "But it's the truth, it was told to me by Prince Jason himself." Said the Nutcracker. "Humph! Prince Jason? He's the reason we're all stuck in this mess! If it weren't for that reckless boy the mouse king wouldn't be turning everyone into Knick knacks!" he gestured at the Nutcracker

"You make the prince sound pretty awful." The Nutcracker looked down not meeting anyone's eyes. "Awful?! Hahahaha that would be a complement! He was useless, lazy, and irresponsible!" the man ranted as he paced around. "Major Hedge, aren't you forgetting that Prince Jason was my friend." The younger man said getting the Majors attention "Captain Leo you're forgetting that I am your superior." Leo just rolled his eyes and walks away. Hedge lets out a long sigh "I had high hopes for that kid," grumble "But that doesn't matter, I've got more important things to worry about. Like keeping what's left of our subjects safe from the mouse king!"

Piper took a step forward "Then maybe you should be looking for the princess too." Hedge looked up at her "I don't have time to search for some cupcake blah blah blah." Piper tried not to laugh "That's sugarplum princess." Piper corrected. Hedge waved a hand at her "To look for some imaginary princess." Leo cut in "Wait Major! I think they are telling the truth, I once overheard the king telling Prince Jason about this magical princess. The king himself had believed in her magic and we've tried everything else to defeat the mouse." Hedge seemed to think things over for a moment "Hmmm. Do you even know where she is?" he asked looking at Piper and the Nutcracker again.

"We were told that she is on an island across the sea of storms." The Nutcracker told them glad that they were listening to them at last. Grumble grumble "Alright we'll go with you to look for this sugarplum princess, but I'll be in charge of this expedition!" said Hedge and the Nutcracker bowed graciously to him "Of course." He and Piper turned to leave but Leo came over and grabbed the Nutcracker by the arm pulling him to a stop "Do you know what happened to Prince Jason?" the concern was clear in his voice and his eyes as he asked about his missing friend. The Nutcracker looked at him "The mouse king destroyed him..." he looked down as he broke the news to Leo then walked away.

…

The mouse king leaned forward on his throne and stared at the two solders standing before him. "So, you're telling me that the Nutcracker- a _wooden utensil_ \- managed to escape a well-armed fighting squadron _Unharmed_? And instead of fleeing into the hills you instead chose to return to me and report your incompetence?" the mouse king sneered at his solders as he recounted the report they had just given him. "Um yes…?" one solider looks at the other uncertainly. "Why don't you just blast them with your sceptre sire?" the bat laughed as he watched them tremble. The mouse king stood and looked at his sceptre "I suppose that I could…" he transforms it into a golden sword and the soldiers panic. "But I find its power to transform the incompetent much more gratifying." He looked pointedly at the two before him and they gulped audibly "The trick is making you useful." He transforms the sword back into a sceptre "Brice how are we doing with statuary for the palace?"

The bat, Brice pulls open a door off to the side of the room "Seem to be full up your lordiness." The mouse king thinks a little more "How about lawn ornaments then?" the mouse king asks and Brice pulls aside a curtain on a nearby window "Too much ornament, not enough lawn it looks like." He replied and the mouse king tapped his jaw in thought "How about paperweights?" this time Brice flew over to a cabinet full of small stone mice "We're covered for those too it seems." The mouse king places his hand to his head dramatically "Hmm what does one create for the palace that has everything already?" he asked of no one in particular. Brice raised his wing "Oh! How about bookends? After all there are two of them!" the mice soldiers panic even more. "That's a wonderful idea Brice; you know I do believe I'm starting to rub off on you." He then turns his attention back to the two mice "Since other tasks posed a challenge to thee, you shall be bookends for eternity."

He casts his spell turning the two mice to stone and shrinking them down until they became decorative bookends sitting on the throne room floor, he then walks over to the table he uses for his maps and charts to look in the royal registry that had been brought to him. "Here it is, the sugarplum princess 'kind, clever, and brave…'" he trails off as he looks down at the page, his eyes scanning the words over and over again and flipping the page "That's it?!" he throws the book across the room in a fit of rage after coming up empty handed "Where is she?!" then he pauses as a new thought occurs to him and he grabs his sceptre once more. "Hahaha I guess I'll just have to reduce the Nutcracker to splinters before he can find her." He glances around the room until his eye fall upon a stone pillar "Rock that will walk, destroy whom I seek, carnage and havoc will be yours to wreak!" the Pillar crumbles and reforms into a giant stone golem that lets out an angry roar that sends Brice running for cover.

The mouse king looks proudly at his new creation "Find the wooden man, and crush him!" he orders, a murderous light in his eyes. The golem turns to carry out its orders, shaking the ground as it leaves. "Follow him Brice, he's a bit rough around the edges and may need some guidance." The mouse king said as he watched the golem go. "You want me to babysit a rock?" Brice asks incredulously but when the mouse king glares at him he changes his tune "Alright! Alright!" he starts to fly away and mumbles under his breath "It's better than _being_ a rock." He heads out after the golem.

 **Please let me know what you think!**


	5. Chapter 5 Old friends and new friends

**So I forgot my laptop charger at home and now have to use my sisters laptop to work on this and I hate it so much, the keys don't always work and she doesn't have Microsoft word and no spell check or word count so I'm having some trouble with it but I think I fixed any problems please enjoy this chapter.**

 **Ch 5 Old Friends and New friends  
**

Back at the trees Piper tucked Nico and Hazel into bed "What about Arion? Is he going to be back?" Piper sat on the edge of the bed "I'm sure Arion will be just fine, we'll find him. Okay?" Hazel and Nico nodded "Okay." They said together. "Alright goodnight you two, sweet dreams." Piper smiled to them before turning to leave. "Good night Piper." They said in return. Piper goes outside and finds the Nutcracker sitting at the edge of the platform watching the moon but too lost in thought to really see it.

The Nutcracker let out a sigh as Piper approached unnoticed "Couldn't sleep?" Piper asked as she sat down next to him. He lets of a small laugh that holds no real humor "I'm a Nutcracker, I don't exactly need sleep you know." Piper places her hand on his comfortingly "You are much more than that though, Prince Jason." His head turns quickly to stare at her in shock. "Why didn't you say anything before?" he looked away as though ashamed "I didn't want to be the prince and when I was, I just wanted to be someone else. But now I see that I don't deserve to be the prince." Piper shook her head "But aren't you risking everything in order to save your kingdom?"  
The Nutcracker- Jason- lets out another sigh "My people hate me, some even more than the mouse king. My only hope is to at last find the sugarplum princess so that she can bring happiness back to my people. I owe them that much." He stands up and walks away. Piper watched Jason walk away "You do deserve to be prince, I know you do." She looked up at the moon "We'll find the sugarplum princess for sure."  
…

The next morning Piper and Jason- still known to the rest as the Nutcracker- set out With Hedge and Leo on their journey to find the sugarplum princess. After some time they leave the forest and come across a bridge spanning a gorge. The rickety bridge didn't look very safe and Piper had her doubts about being able to cross it. Hedge on the other hand seemed pleased by it "Ha here's our bridge!" the Nutcracker though seemed to share Pipers opinion "Maybe we should look for a better bridge to cross." Hedge let out an annoyed huff "Maybe you should remember which of us is in charge here." He says before heading over to the bridge and taking the first precarious steps onto it.

Leo went next trying his best to follow where Hedge stepped, but then Hedge lost his balance as a strong gust of wind came and knocked him into Leo pushing him over the side "AHHHH!" Piper and the Nutcracker run to the edge and look down to see Leo hanging onto the rope just under the wooden planks "Are you okay?" Piper asks unsure of how they can help him. "Please help me!" Leo calls back.  
Meanwhile Hedge had already reached the other side safely, he turns round in time to see the Nutcracker reaching down to save Leo just as another strong gust of wind comes and knocks Leo loose but luckily he had grabbed onto the Nutcrackers hand, in order to pull Leo to safety the Nutcracker had taken off his left arm and held it down to Leo now with help from Piper he pulled Leo back up onto the bridge. as Leo stares stunned at the Nutcracker he puts his arm back on and gives a nervous chuckle "Heh, sorry we didn't have any rope." when Leo can find his voice again he manages to thank the Nutcracker "You just saved my life, thank you." The Nutcracker didn't meet his eyes but nodded "Anytime."

As Leo continues on ahead the Nutcracker offers a hand to Piper and helps her across the bridge. Slowly but steadily they make it to the other side with no other problems. Leo sat down on top of a rock once he reached the other side so that he could catch his breath "That was some bad luck back there, with the wind and all. Now were short on supplies." said Hedge and Leo jumped to his feet "Short on supplies?! I could have died!" he waved his arms towards the ravine for emphasis. "Well don't go blaming me for your clumsiness and lack of balance." Leo's jaw fell open "Clumsy? You bumped into me when the wind blew!" Hedge just huffed "See no ones to blame, just the wind. Try to be more careful next time." and he turned to walk away.  
Leo looked really annoyed then. "You're the one who was nearly knocked over by the wind!" he called after Hedge "But you were the one dangling from the rope, so work on your balance." Hedge called back without slowing his pace or looking back "You're the one who bumped into me so you work on your balance!" Leo called again as he ran after Hedge. Piper and Jason watched as the other two went on ahead still arguing, she turned to look at the Nutcracker "That was a very noble thing you just did." he shrugged as he looked at her "It's the least I can do for an old friend." Piper looked sad "Not that he'd know that though." Jason shook his head looking ahead "It's better that way." with that they continue on following after their new traveling companions.

 **Please let me know what you think!**


	6. Chapter 6 Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall

**Sorry I the Name changes are confusing, I refer to him as Jason when it's just Piper or her thoughts on him since she's the only one who knows his true identity and I refer to him as the Nutcracker for anyone else.**

 **Okay so I happily have my own computer again so I've edited out any mistakes on this chapter**

 **Ch. 6 Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall!**

At long last they reach the sea; they can see the waves crashing onto the sand and hear sea birds calling. Piper feels her heart squeeze, she hasn't seen the ocean since her parents were still alive. Her mind fills with bitter sweet memories as she looks around her. "Captain Leo and I will go scout for a ship to take up across while you two gather us some more supplies." Hedge said before heading off, Leo just gave them a look like _what can you do?_ Then followed after the major. After they left Jason turned to Piper "Piper, please follow me." She wondered momentarily where Jason wanted her to go and followed him.

...

They walked past the beach until they came to some sea-side cliffs with a rock path leading down to small valley. "The well used to be right over here." he led the way to a cobbled area where a pile of rubble lay. he kicked aside some of the rocks and sand to reveal a metal cover on the ground "Hmm someone must have capped it." he said as he moved more debris and lifted off the cover, all of the sudden a swarm of brightly colored fairies flew out. Piper was amazed by the lovely colors and the sheer number of them. There were even more than the snow fairies that they had encountered when they had first arrived here.

Once more it was the smallest fairy that approached them, she flew round and around Piper, shimmering as she went, then she flew over to Jason and seemed to say something to him. She must have said thank you because he chuckled good naturedly and replied "You're very welcome." Once again the fairies circled and danced around Piper but this time they chattered and appeared to be saying something but she didn't understand them "What are they saying?" she asked while she watched them fly around.

Jason smiled as he translated "They said that you are very beautiful." Piper blushed. She watched as the fairies began to glow and dance again and everywhere that they went new grass and flowers and leaves began to grow and everything looked like spring or summer, even the trees growing nearby began to grow fruit. As they walked along ripe apples began falling from the trees and a few hit Jason on the head but he didn't seem to mind, one of the fairies gestured towards an apple still on the branch and he held out his hand and caught it as it dropped. He held the apple up for Piper to see "Well here's our supplies." and she smiled at him.

While they walked two fairies flew over to Piper and began twilling around her as she walked so that she could join in their dance, she laughed happily and followed them as they went doing her best to keep up and enjoying the sight of bright flowers springing up everywhere. Some of the fairies split off and started spinning around Jason until they managed to lead him towards where Piper was dancing and the two groups of fairies brought the two together so that they could dance with each other. While the fairies continued to dance around them they looked at one another somewhat shyly but then Jason smiled and offered his hand to Piper but just as she was reaching for his hand an awful sound split the air and they all stopped.

The sound had come from up on a hill nearby, and as they watched the rock golem that the mouse king had created came into view, the fairies scattered and flew off in a panic. "Run!" Jason yelled and he and Piper took off trying to escape the monster hot on their tails. It crushed everything in its path as it hobbled after them, not letting up now that its prey was within sight.

They ran as fast as they could back the way they came to where the other two were waiting with a boat, still securing their belongings before they set off. "Captain! Major! Look out!" Piper called as loud as she could not daring to look back knowing full well that the monster wasn't far behind. Hedge shook his head "Now what is she going on about? A snake or a spider or a-" he didn't get the chance to finish his rant because just the Leo spotted the thing that was chasing their companions as it crested the hill "Uh Major, I don't think that's a spider or a snake, It's a rock giant!" Hedge dropped the rope he had been holding "Dear Gods!"

...

Brice fluttered round the rock giants head excitedly as he spotted the Nutcracker "Look there he is! There he is! Right there, even I can see him and I'm blind as a bat, well I am a bat but still, he's right there get him!"

...

Piper ran away from the boat over to where large rocks stood by the sea trying to take cover "Major! Captain over here!" she called to them from behind the rocks. As the others joined her, the rock giant picked up a large bolder and hurled it at the boat they were going to use, smashing it to splinters. Hedge was outraged "Hey you rock head! We needed that boat! Come over here and I'll show you how it feels to be smashed to bits!" Leo grabbed Hedges arm pulling him back down "Good going, what next you going to insult his mother?"

The rock giant turned towards them and began walking over to them, they didn't know what to do but all of a sudden a group of fairies circled around them as if to get their attention, then they flew over to the rock giant and zipped around its head while more and more fairies came shining blue as they flew and danced on the water turning it to ice. The rock giant swatted at the fairies as though they were annoying insects buzzing about.

More fairies showed up leading a horse pulling a sleigh, it called out t them "It's Arion! He's okay!" Piper said when she spotted the horse; glad that he was safe and knew that Hazel would be too. "Come on quickly before the snow fairies disappear!" the Nutcracker called as he led the way to the sleigh. They all climbed in and the Nutcracker took the reins steering Arion out onto the frozen sea to escape the rock giant.

The distraction finished, the fairies flew off and the rock giant followed the sleigh out onto the ice "Aha! We should be fine! If he follows us he's going to end up falling right through the ice!" Leo said with a grin on his face as he saw the rock giant step onto the ice after them, but his grin didn't last long as he saw that that wasn't the case. "It seems like the snow fairies did their job a little too well, the ice is thick enough to support his weight." Hedge said as he looked behind them at their pursuer.

The ice shook as the rock giant followed them, the Nutcracker pulled on the reins bringing Arion to a stop and jumped down and drew his sword so that he could stand and fight." Hey what are you thinking you idiot?! A sword's not going to do you any good against that thing!" Hedge called after him "You'll be crushed by it before you even make a scratch!" Piper bit her lip in worry "Be careful!" she called to him, praying that he'd be alright. "It's alright! I know what I'm doing!" he called back and then he raised his sword high above his head waiting for the rock giant to get just a little bit closer and then brought it down as hard as he could into the ice causing it to crack and ran back to the sleigh letting the weight of the giant finish the job.

As the Giant grew closer the Ice split and cracked all around and the cracks started to reach the sleigh Piper looked at the ice and then at the Nutcracker "Hurry!" she called to him as he ran "Go! Get going we don't have much time!" he called back as he ran. Hedge grabbed the reins and snapped them causing Arion to take off with the sleigh just as the Nutcracker managed to jump on the back. The rock giant reached the weakest point in the ice and fell right through as Piper and Leo pulled the Nutcracker safely into the sleigh.

 **Please let me know what you think!**

 **Ch. 7 will be up soon**


	7. Chapter 7 The island in sight

**This one is a little shorter but I hope you like it**

 **Ch. 7 The Island in sight**

They traveled for a long time over the ice, there was a thick fog hanging in the air so they couldn't go too fast in order not to miss their destination. The Nutcracker heaved a sigh as he looked around at the fog surrounding them "We'll be in a lot of trouble if we miss the princess' island because of this fog." he said. Piper turned to him and placed her hand on his "It'll be just fine. You battled the mouse army single handily, literally. Saved Leo when he was about to fall into the ravine. And saved us all from a vicious pile of rock! You did all that without the help of the sugarplum princess." She smiled warmly at him hoping he knew just how amazing he really was. Prince or peasant, Nutcracker or man, Jason was a hero, of that she had no doubt.

But the Nutcracker just shook his head "As he is, the mouse king is much too powerful to take on alone. Besides," he said as he held her hand between his "If we don't find the sugarplum princess how are we going to get you back home safely and back to normal?" Piper let her hand slip from his as she sat back in her seat, the realization that she could be trapped here forever weighing heavily on her mind, while other emotions weighed heavily on her heart "That is what you want, isn't it?" the Nutcracker asked her with concern. Piper looked at him "O-of course." but even as she said those words she wasn't sure what it was she wanted anymore, too much had happened and she couldn't just leave yet. They both looked away as the sleigh continued on.

...

The mouse kings bat spy, Brice returned to the castle to report back what had happened at the sea of storms when the rock giant caught up to the Nutcracker. "The Nutcracker destroyed the rock giant?!" The mouse king paced in front of his map table angrily. "Yup, he sent him to the bottom of the sea, right through the ice. And he and the girl are not alone anymore; they also have help from Major Hedge and Captain Leo now too." The mouse king came to a halt "It just proves that they are a couple of gullible idiots!" He looked around at all of the many books thrown everywhere all around the room "I've looked through every page of every book in this palace but there is nothing else with any mention of the sugarplum princess!"

Brice shrugged "I don't know what to tell you your majesty; they seem really keen on finding her no matter what." The mouse king angrily slams the end of his sceptre on the floor "She's nothing but a fantasy!" he clenched and unclenched his fist "But if that blasted Nutcracker wants to believe in fairy tales then he is going to learn that this one doesn't have a happy ending."

...

The fog still hadn't cleared, if anything it only got thicker. Hedge pulled on the reins bringing them to a stop "This weather is getting worse, it's time to turn around and head back. We'll come up with a new plan to defeat the mouse king." Arion stamped his foot and snorted impatiently "Wait!" Piper said "What is it now? There's no end to this fog and we don't know how much longer we have until this ice melts." Hedge said "I think Arion senses something around here." Piper said as she stepped down from the sleigh "I'm sure of it." With that she walked off into the fog with the Nutcracker following close behind.

After a short distance the fog begins to clear away and the ice becomes solid ground without a trace of frost. Together they head onto the island, untethering Arion so that he can graze happily while they search around. "Alright you cupcakes, no time to sit around admiring the flowers! We have a princess to find." Said major Hedge in a commanding voice "Hold on a second; one, I'm not a cupcake, and two, I vote we let the Nutcracker lead us now. He's already proven himself and he knows what we are looking for." Said Captain Leo "B-but he's made of wood." Hedge couldn't seem to come up with a better argument than that. "He's the reason that we came on this quest to begin with, and the reason we were able to make it this far." The Nutcracker shook his head and looked at Piper "Only half the reason." And he gestured for Piper to lead the way. "You want to hand the reins to a stump? I've never heard of such a thing!" Hedge complained but followed the others anyway.

Birds sang and a gentle breeze blew through the trees making everything seem more serine and peaceful. As they followed the path the saw a shimmering castle in the distance on top of a nearby hill, the Nutcracker along with Hedge and Leo started walking towards it but the Nutcracker stopped and turned when he saw that Piper wasn't with them, he saw her standing back looking around while grasping the locket the owl had given her. "Piper are you coming?" he asked getting her attention "Oh, um yes." She said and he turned back and continued walking. Piper still felt a bit apprehensive now that they reached their destination, would she have to say goodbye to everyone so soon? She shook herself from her thoughts. It was time to see this through so she took a deep breath for courage and hurried to catch up with the others.

 **Please let me know what you think**

 **And a special thanks to Queen Pickle the Third for all of your wonderful reviews, I'm so glad you are enjoying this story as much as I am! ^_^**


	8. Chapter 8 Now or never

**Well this one is a little longer than the last one so I hope you like it, there's probably going to be a total of 9 or 10 chapters to this story so we are approaching the end now**

 **Ch. 8 Now or never**

The Nutcracker along with Major Hedge and Captain Leo approach the doors of the castle while Piper hangs back a bit still apprehensive about entering the castle. As the Nutcracker reaches for the door handle the doors swing open and the three of the proceed inside, as they move towards the grand staircase Leo walks into what turns out to be a backdrop made to look like the entranceway of a palace, suddenly there is the sound of moving mechanisms and they look up to see a cage come crashing down on top of them trapping them inside and locking to the bottom piece they had been standing on. The false castle falls away crashing to the ground around them. Piper looks on in horror as she realizes why she felt so uneasy about this place.

A group of bats sits on top of the cage the others are trapped in and Brice flutters in front of it smiling triumphantly "Alright boys, off to the mouse kings palace with the prisoners!" the bats all flap their wings together and lift off into the air with the cage. "NO!" Piper yells as she runs forward trying to catch them but she isn't fast enough, she ends up tripping and falling into the nearby shrubs. Brice looks at their captives but his smile fades as he only counts three prisoners within the cage "Wait a minute, what happened to that girl? Meh oh well, the Nutcrackers the important one anyway." And with that he flaps his wings and heads off after the others "Not like she could get off this island alone anyway unless she's part mermaid."

…

Piper gets to her feet and brushes the dirt off of her nightgown and pulls a few twigs from her hair as she sees the bats and the cage holding her friends fade out of sight. She heads back the way they came and found Arion and the sleigh where they had left them but now the ice covering the sea was melted, nothing but a few floating icecaps to show that there had been any ice there at all. Completely discouraged at this point Piper sits down in the grass and brings her knees up to her chest and rests her chin upon them. "Just what was I thinking? That somehow I was going to find some magical princess and save the day? That I could save prince charming?" she let out a sigh and buried her face in her arms. Then she lifted her head again and held out the locket she was wearing and looked at it "I guess I could probably use this to go home, but what about the others? Jason is still a Nutcracker and he and Hedge and Leo are still trapped, Hazel and Nico still don't have a home to go back to, and the mouse king is still in control. I can't just sit here doing nothing! I need to find a way off of this island!"

Suddenly out of nowhere the small spring fairy zips over to Piper "Oh! Hello again." The fairy starts chirping at her and even though she's not really sure what the fairy is saying Piper gets up and follows the little fairy. They come to a grove of trees and down fly more fairies holding what looks like a swing mage of vines. "You want to take me to where my friends are? Are you sure?" Piper asks as she get what the fairies plan was. The smallest one nods and pats the seat "Okay! Let's get going!" Piper smiles and sits down on the swing, grasping the vines and holding on as tight as she can as the fairies take off.

Piper can't believe how amazing everything looks from so high up, the glimmering sea, the snow covered mountains, the green trees, all so beautiful but she can't think about that now, not with her friends still in danger. "Hold on you guys, I'm on my way to save you." She promises as they approach the mouse kings castle. The castle its self looks old and falling apart in some places, the fairies fly over to a ledge with a doorway leading up to the main palace and place Piper safely down. She turns and smiles at them once more "Thank you for all of your help." She whispers to them before turning back to the door and heading inside. She didn't notice the fairies talking amongst themselves before they flew away.

…

Inside of the palace Piper kept to the shadows and pressed herself against the walls to avoid being seen by the mouse guards patrolling the halls, luckily her dance experience kept her light on her feet allowing her to move soundlessly as she went.

…

Back in the forest where Piper and Jason had first met Hedge and Leo and had left Hazel and Nico to keep them safe, the fairies that had aided Piper were now asking the people of the kingdom for their help. It was Nico who managed to convince them "They're right! It's time we fought back against the mouse!" cheers went up all around as the people agreed. Brice had been sitting on a nearby tree branch and cringed at the thought of the people revolting against the mouse king.

…

Piper picked her way through the halls and finally found her way outside to a veranda that overlooked the courtyard below, in the center of the courtyard where what appeared to be a fountain stood the mice where piling stacks of wood. With a new sense of horror rising in her chest Piper realized that it was a pyre like they used in the witch trials! And she had a sinking suspicion that there was only one person it could be meant for. "Jason! Oh Gods!" as she watched the mouse king came forward and yelled at his soldiers "More wood! I want this to be an unforgettable show of a lifetime hahahaha!" Piper's breath caught in her throat and she ducked behinds a pillar as the mouse king perhaps sensing her presence turned and looked her way. Piper crouched down low and headed for the nearest door to her right hoping that the mouse king hadn't seen her. She opened the door as slowly as she could trying to avoid making any noise and entered a tower stairwell and began descending the spiral staircase as her heart thundered heavily in her chest.

 **Please let me know what you think!**


	9. Chapter 9 Prison break

**Hey check it out, 9 chapters I'm so proud of myself right now! Okay so one or two more chapters left after this, things are going to get heated soon.**

 **Ch.9 Prison break**

The mouse king paced in front of the now complete pyre but stopped when Brice came and settled down on the edge of the old fountain "Ah Brice! There you are. Everything is finally falling into place, the Nutcracker is in custody, the kingdom is mine, and everything is right in the world. Soon all of my worries will be over at long last!" the mouse king said gleefully. Brice laughed nervously "Um about that… that's not really the case…?" he shrugs his shoulders and looks nervously at the mouse king wishing he could just fly away instead of having to report what he had overheard from the people in the forest.

"How so?" the mouse king demanded as he took a step towards the bat cowering before him. Brice gulped audibly before continuing "Well your majesty, it uh, seems that your subjects are um, planning an… uprising?" he ended on a question afraid of his masters reaction to the news "WHAT?!" the mouse king shouted in outrage. He reaches down and grabs the bat and holds him to his face "I want every last villager, fairy and general trouble maker rounded up and brought back here to witness this display of my absolute power, do I make myself clear?!" he snarled at the bat in his grasp. "I'll get right on it sire! No need to worry!" the mouse king threw the bat through the air, Brice flapped his wings to steady himself before heading out to carry out the new orders.

…

Piper continued down the spiraling stairs until she reached the bottom, at the end of the stairs was a dimly lit corridor. She followed it but came to an immediate stop when she rounded the corner and came face to face with a couple of mouse guards. Piper stifled a gasp and quickly stood up as straight as she could trying to look important and commanding (thank you hedge!) "There you are!" the two guards looked at one another not sure what was going on. "The king needs to see you right away, out in the courtyard!" This seemed to get their attention "Uh… And he said that if you don't go quickly he'd make sure that you spent the rest of your lives as houseflies! Or was it horseflies… no wait fruit flies, wait aren't those the ones with the shortest life span?" Piper said thoughtfully as she pretended to forget the exact threat.

The two guards looked at each other in horror and literally dropped everything and ran for the stairs Piper had just come from. Once they were gone, their weapons still clattering on the stone floor where they had dropped Piper let out the breath she had been holding not knowing until then that her trick would work. Grandpa Tom had always told her that she had a powerful voice ever since the day she was born, all she needed to do was show confidence and the power of her voice would shine through.

Once Piper had taken a couple of breaths to calm herself she went over to the door that the mice had just been guarding, she grabbed the key ring off of the hook on the wall by the door and unlocked it. When Piper stepped inside the circular room was dark except for the light spilling in from the hallway, but more than that the room was completely empty except for Piper. Piper felt her heart sink, could they be locked away in a different part of the castle? If so how was she going to find them? And how was she going to avoid any more guards? Her little trick may have worked this time, but what about the next?

Unsure of what to do next she turned to leave before the mice came back or their replacements showed up. "Piper?" she stopped at the sound of Jason's voice inside the room but with its round walls it was hard to place the source "What's wrong with you girl, we're right here!" came Hedges voice next so they were definitely in the room right?

"It seems that we can see her but she can't see us." The Nutcracker said "So maybe she can't hear us either." Said Leo in despair "No I know she heard us, Piper we are right here." Said the Nutcracker as he reached out his hand towards Piper. Piper still couldn't see her friends but knew without a doubt that they were here, on some instinct Piper reached out to the empty space before her and her hand connected with something solid like a glass wall. The Nutcracker stood on the other side, his hand and Pipers pressed together but kept apart by the barrier keeping him and the other two hidden from her. Piper smiled but then withdrew her hand and the three of them watched as she walked towards the door unsure of what she was doing.

Piper went to the doorway and reached for the nearest torch that had been sitting there unlit, she then turned back to the room and hefted the torch over her shoulder "Stand back you guys!" she called hoping that her crazy idea didn't end up hurting one of her friends. She brought down the torch with all her might onto the invisible wall shattering it like glass to reveal her friends safe and sound on the other side. Relief flooded through her as she saw them but most of all she was glad to see that the Nutcracker was alright, she ran up to him and threw her arms around him and he wrapped his around her in return. They stood embracing each other for only a few seconds before it dawned on them what they were doing and they quickly broke apart feeling embarrassed. Hedge and Leo stood off to the side not sure what to do in this situation.

"We've got to get you out of her! The mouse kings building a bon fire outside!" Piper said urgently as the reality of their situation took place of the joy and relief she had been feeling seconds before at seeing her friends again. "I really doubt it's to roast marshmallows." The Nutcracker said and the four of them hurried out of the cell and towards the stairs as fast as they could. They ran up the spiraling stairs with Piper leading the way.

…

Outside in the courtyard the mice gathered the villagers, lining them up along the walls so that they would have a clear view of the central fountain-made-pyre and witness the mouse kings revenge. Up on the balcony that Piper had first seen the pyre from the four of them looked out at the scene below them "That's it, sugarplum princess or no sugarplum princess, that rat has got to be stopped here and now."

 **Please let me know what you think!**


	10. Chapter 10 Final battle, spells undone

**Ch. 10 Final battle, spells undone**

Piper watched as the Nutcracker climbed up onto the railing of the balcony and called down to the mouse king in challenge "Is this your idea of running a kingdom?" the mouse king looked up and a wicked gleam lit up his eyes as he smiled "Ah Nutcracker, you're just in time for your party. And what's a party without a little light show?" he turns and uses his scepter to light the bon fire behind him, the flames shooting up as high as the palace walls and the heart was searing.

The Nut cracker jumped down into the courtyard landing on the top of a carriage and knocking out a mouse guard in the process, he drew his sword as he landed and faced the mouse king "There's much more to being king than just wearing a crown." He glared at the mouse king who laughed at him "Heheheh so suddenly you're an expert on what it takes to be a proper king, that's funny."

"At last I know that you can't have the people's loyalty until you've earned their respect, I've seen it firsthand." The mouse king laughed again as he shook his head "I don't need their loyalty, in fact, I don't even really need them." He turned to face the crowd gathered at the edge of the courtyard "Oh those peasants who dare to challenge me, living statuary you will be!" he raised his scepter and waved it at the crowd turning them into stone.

The Nutcracker leapt towards the mouse king and swung his sword but he was blocked by the mouse kings scepter, which he then turned into an axe and rushed at the Nutcracker causing him to have to defend himself, he dodged to the side and brought his sword down knocking the scepter away but not out of the mouse kings grip. He pushed the mouse king back making him fall against one of the carriages.

The mouse king sneered at him "Scrappy little Nutcracker you are, it seems that I underestimated you." He transformed his axe back into a scepter and began to chant another spell "With the brawn of twenty and six, I will smite my enemy into sticks!" a golden glow began to envelop him making him grow larger and larger until he stood about twelve feet tall. He brought down his scepter like a club as he bashed and swung at the Nutcracker who just barely managed to dodge and evade but the mouse king wouldn't let up, he just kept swinging at the Nutcracker until he landed a blow and knocked him back towards the blazing bon fire in the center of the courtyard. The Nutcracker hit the edge of the stone fountain and fell in a heap on the ground, his sword falling from his hand.

"Nutcracker!" Piper yelled as she rushed to his side, she knelt down beside him to see how badly damaged he was but before she could ask the mouse king loomed over them that sneer back on his face as he looked at the crumpled form of the Nutcracker "Well Nutcracker, I'll give you a choice, dismemberment, or barbeque?" he lifted his scepter to empathize his threat.

"No! You are just a coward, hiding behind a magic wand. You don't have any real power and you'll never be a real king!" Piper yelled as she stood between the mouse king and the Nutcracker. The mouse kings face contorted into an ugly mask of rage "It seems that I didn't shrink you small enough the last time. Your mouth is still much too big!" he growled out "But now that is going to change." He raised his scepter above his head as he focused all of his attention on Piper, meanwhile the Nutcracker now out of the mouse king's view reached for his fallen sword. "Oh one who vexes me, smaller and smaller you will be!" he sent the spell towards Piper who stood her ground but then the Nutcracker jumped in the way and used his sword to deflect the curse "No!" he cried as he threw himself in front of Piper.

The curse bounced off of the sword and flew back towards the mouse king, the power of it knocking the Nutcracker to the ground once more, but the real damage was done to the mouse king as his own magic hit him and he began to shrink, the magic scepter disintegrating as he became the size of a bug, the only thing remaining was the royal crown that clattered on the flagstones of the courtyard as the now miniature mouse darted away and fled into a nearby sewer grate, Hedge and Leo followed his path and Hedge let out a triumphant shout "HAHA! That's right; he's right where he belongs. That no good, power hungry sewer rat!" Leo just shook his head "It's not like you really did anything you know."

Piper ignored them as she knelt down next to the Nutcracker, he was in really bad shape and her heart clenched in her chest as she held him, tears began to form in her eyes "My poor Nutcracker…" she said softly as she placed a hand on his cheek next to the scar on his lip. "It's alright Piper, I'm just wood, remember?" he gave a small huff that must have been an attempt at a laugh, Piper shook her head as a tear ran down her face "You and I both know that that's not true, you're so much more than that." She leaned down and placed a kiss on his cheek as more tears started to fall "Prince Jason."

Suddenly a bright light began to gather around Jason and Piper moved back and she watched in awe as the Nutcracker before her was encased in blue light and began to transform back into the human he once was, the wooden Nutcracker that her Grandpa Tom had given her for Christmas was replaced by a young man dressed in purple and gold, his hair was blond and his eyes were like the sky, and that same scar was just above his lip, he raised his hands up to see them just as astonished as the rest of them that the curse was lifted.

"Prince Jason!" Leo said in shock as he looked at the friend he thought he had lost but had been there alongside him up till now. "The Prince!" Hedge said in amazement but then he seemed to remember all of the things he had said since meeting the Nutcracker and became rather sheepish "Oh…"

Piper still had tears in her eyes but now she smiled brightly as she reached out her hand and helped Jason onto his feet, they stood together and faced each other, but as Jason let go of her hand and took a step back more light enveloped Piper this time, shining pink as it began to transform her as well, her choppy brown hair now neatly braided and her nightgown now a beautiful dress the likes of which she's never worn and her slippers were replaced with dancing slippers and a golden tiara was on top of her head. She hardly recognized herself as she looked down at the new clothes.

"Of course! The sugar plum princess couldn't be found because she was with us all along!" Jason exclaimed as he looked at Piper, a joyful smile on his face. "What?" Piper could barely get the word out she didn't understand what was happening. "Don't you see Piper? You are the sugar plum princess!" Piper couldn't believe it, how was that even possible? "Me, you're saying I'm the magical princess?" Jason nodded "It makes sense now, you were the one who saved me from the mouse king, you rescued us from his dungeon, and your courage brought about the mouse kings downfall. Not to mention your kiss broke the curse on me." Piper was still having a hard time processing all of this.

"You truly are the sugar plum princess; look around all of the evil magic that was cast by the mouse king is being undone!" Jason said as he gestured to the palace and courtyard around them. Everywhere they looked things were changing in a pink glow, the palace became brighter, the grass was green, and the people returned to normal. Everyone looked around them in amazement as the sky that was covered with dark clouds became a brilliant blue and the bon fire transformed into a beautiful fountain just as it had been before with bright flowers springing up around it.

Jason held Pipers hand in his own "You've saved us all from the evil magic of the mouse king Piper." She looked at him and smiled "And now you can take your place as king." But her smile fell as she caught the uncertainty in his eyes as he looked around them "That's up to the people of this kingdom to decide."

"Three cheers for Prince Jason!" Leo called and the crowd joined in happily "Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray!" they all called, some jumping up and down as they cheered. Petals rained down from the sky above Piper and Jason's heads and they smiled at one another and looked over to see Nico and Hazel dancing happily, Leo and Hedge smiled too and joined in with a dance of their own, Piper and Jason along with the rest of the crowd cheered them on as they broke off into solo parts and seemed to compete with one another, Piper and Jason laughed at the antics of their friends as they watched them sync up again but one of them stumbled and they both fell to the ground but before Piper could worry too much they both began to laugh good naturedly about it and she smiled again as they helped each other up and gave a bow to the audience who cheered even more.

Fairies flew overhead and dropped more petals down on them as Jason led Piper out towards the fountain and everyone was silent as they began to dance, Piper was still unsure of how well she could do this but once she started the steps came naturally to her and she felt like she was floating on air, she and Jason started separately and slowly met in the middle and began a slow and beautiful dance that left everyone mesmerized as they watched the two of them. As they danced all of the magic and damage around the kingdom was undone and the land was whole and beautiful once more, but the two of them were lost in their own little world where it was only the two of them until at last they met in the middle and gazed into each other's eyes.

 **Chapter 10 as promised! Sorry this took so long you guys!**

 **Please review and let me know what you think. ^_^**


	11. Chapter 11 Christmas magic

**Chapter 11 Christmas magic**

The people all cheered more joyous than before and a group of fairies brought a bouquet over to Piper as she and Jason stepped back from one another once more "Thank you my friends, as your true king I will let the teachings of my father be my guide." Jason said as he addressed the people gathered before him, they were happy to hear his words. He turned back to Piper "You know, none of this would have been possible without you Piper, thank you." He lifted her hand in his own and placed a kiss on it "Will you please stay and become my queen?"

Piper looked down and held up the locket that the owl had given her before they had come here "This locket was meant to take me home," She looked up at Jason again "but in my heart I feel like I am home." He smiles back at her and they lean in and close their eyes as they kiss, the people erupt into more cheering, Hedge and Leo look proud, Nico looks a little grossed out but Hazels smiles sweetly, Jason and Piper pull away from each other, both thrilled that they can finally be together but then they hear the voice of the mouse king "I so despise happy endings!" they look up to see him sitting on top of his bat underling Brice, they swoop in and snatch the locket away from Pipers neck "No!" she cries out as the mouse laughs and opens the locket.

The magic that the owl had told them about spilled from the locket and Hazel and Nico who were standing nearby turned to the ice fairies around them and they made snow balls and threw them at the bat dazing him and knocking the two of them to the ground, but it was too late, the magic had already taken affect and Piper began to fade, Jason tried to reach for her in an attempt to keep her there with him but he couldn't stop her from disappearing "Piper, No!" she tried to reach for him as well but their hands passed right through each other "Jason!" the broken hearted look on her face was mirrored in his "Piper…" she vanished completely "I love you…" Jason said but his words didn't reach her as he stared at the empty space where she had just been not even seconds before.

…

It was morning on Christmas day, the old grandfather clock chimed the hour and Piper woke up in the same place she had fallen asleep the night before, she sat up and looked around her "Nutcracker!" she called out but there was no response. She looked down at herself and saw that she had on the same nightgown and slippers she had on when she had gone to sleep, then she raised her hands to her throat but the locket was gone. She refused to believe that it had all just been a dream so she jumped up and started searching the room for any trace she could find of the Nutcracker or the events that had taken place last night. As she looked by the tree her Grandpa Tom walked into the living room "Well I see you're finally up." She turned to see him standing in the entryway "And I see that the mice had a little party of their own last night." He said as he looked around.

"It wasn't a party grandpa, it was a war! The Nutcracker was fighting against the evil mouse king who shrunk me with his magic scepter." She told him as she thought back to the event of that night. At that point Drew walked into the room "What a lame story, you need to grow up Piper you're not a little kid anymore." Piper looked at her sister feeling annoyed "It's not a story!" she said but Drew just waved a hand at her dismissively "Fine a weird dream then, though if you ask me it sound more like a nightmare, anyway lets open the rest of the presents." She said as she walked past Piper towards the tree. "It wasn't a dream either." Piper grit out, then she turned to look at her sister "Drew did you take my Nutcracker?" Drew looked up from the present she was holding "What would I want with your wooden doll?" she went back to unwrapping the gift she was holding "He's not a wooden doll, he's a king and he saved his land from the evil mouse who had a bat-"

She was cut off by her grandpa placing a hand on her shoulder "I'm glad you liked the Nutcracker, but your dream is over now so let's get on with the day, look you still have other presents to unwrap." He said as he directed her towards the couch and handed her a brightly wrapped gift. "I told you it wasn't a dream…" Piper said but the fight had gone out of her words, she sat there and began to unwrap the gift in her hands when the doorbell rang, Piper and drew looked up confused, they didn't have people over on Christmas so who could it be?

"Ah is it time already?" Grandpa Tom said to himself as he went to answer the door. "Time for what grandpa?" Piper asked as she and Drew went to see who was at the door, they both stopped dead in their tracks as the mystery guest took off his hood and scarf to reveal blond hair and blue eyes that could put the sky to shame on any clear day and when he turned and smiled Piper saw a small scar on his lip that made the smile seem a little lopsided but oh so endearing, now she really felt like she was dreaming but if she was then her family was having the same dream because Drew for once was lost for words and Grandpa Tom was taking the young man's coat for him "Girls I'd like to introduce you to someone, his name is Jason and he's the son of someone who was friends with your parents a long time ago, I ran into him the other day and had invited him over for the day. I thought you would want to meet." He smiled as he looked at Piper.

Jason stepped forward and lifted Pipers hand to place a kiss on it "It's a pleasure to meet you." He said and Piper couldn't help but smile at him "Same to you." Drew was confused and speechless as she watched the two of them. "I've already asked Jason to stay for dinner so maybe you two would like to get better acquainted." Piper nodded but never took her eyes away from Jason's "That sound great grandpa." Grandpa Tom reached out and led Drew out of the room to give the two of them some privacy "But what about the presents? And Why does Piper get the hot guy?" she asked as she was led out.

Jason held both of Pipers hands in his and smiled warmly at her as he lifted them and place something in the palm of her hands, it was the locket! Piper looked at him with the happiest smile she'd ever worn, it hadn't been a dream! "May I have this dance?" he looked at her with a knowing smile, they both turned to look at the wooden owl on top of the clock, it looked as though it was happy too, Piper placed the locket around her neck "Well I couldn't say no to the king, now could I?" she held her hand out to his and they began to dance around the room, lost in their own little world where it was just the two of them as they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes. "Merry Christmas Piper." Jason said "Merry Christmas Jason." Piper said in return and as they stopped dancing they leaned in and shared a magical kiss that was perfect.

 **The End.**

 **Okay so this is the first multi chapter fic that I've completed and I am so proud of myself right now Yeah!**

 **Please let me know what you have thought about my story, I really had fun writing this and it makes me so happy that others have enjoyed it as much as I have, I hope to write more stories that you guys will love, I even have some (a lot) on the go right now so stay tuned!**

 **Ammstar out!**


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